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Leave in Egypt
Maternity, paternity, and parental leave in Egypt
Adoption leave in Egypt
Other leave in Egypt
Public holidays in Egypt
Protect your employees and your business
Leave and time off in Egypt
Employees in Egypt are entitled to time off work in various situations — and employers need to understand those entitlements to ensure they are adhered to. For example, employees who have worked for their employer for at least six months have the right to at least 21 days of annual leave each year. There are also additional entitlements based on employees’ age and length of service.
In this section, we’ll talk about the ins and outs of annual leave in Egypt. We will also discuss various other types of leave that Egyptian employers have to provide, such as sick leave, maternity leave, and adoption leave. Some of these are paid for directly by the employer, while others are funded through the social security system. Read on for everything you need to know.
Leave in Egypt
Employees in Egypt are entitled to at least 21 days of annual leave each year, as long as they have worked for their employer for at least six months. This is increased to 30 days per year for:
- Employees who have worked for their employer for 10 years or more.
- Employees aged at least 50 years old.
Of course, employers can choose to offer their Egyptian employees a more generous leave package. This can be a valuable benefit to employees, which can ultimately lead to greater engagement, retention, and productivity. Unused annual leave is carried over to the next year.
Sick leave in Egypt
Employees in Egypt are also entitled to time off work if they are sick. Specifically, employees have the right to up to six months of paid sick leave, which is funded through the social security system. This is paid at a rate of 75% of normal salary for the first 90 days, and 85% for the remaining 90 days.
Public holidays in Egypt
Employees in Egypt are also entitled to paid time off on public holidays. If an employee works on a holiday, they are entitled to pay at 200% of their normal rate for the hours worked. We’ll discuss public holidays in more detail at the end of this section.
Maternity, paternity, and parental leave in Egypt
Employees in Egypt are entitled to time off work when they have a baby. Read on for what you need to know as an employer.
Maternity leave in Egypt
Female employees in Egypt are entitled to up to 90 days of maternity leave, as long as they have paid into the social security system for at least 10 consecutive months prior to the leave. This leave is paid at 100% of the employee’s normal salary, with 75% funded through the social security system and the remaining 25% paid by the employer.
Employers are entitled to take up to three periods of maternity leave during their total employment service. After they return to work, mothers have the right to either two thirty-minute nursing breaks or one one-hour break each day for up to two years after the birth of their child.
Paternity leave in Egypt
Egyptian labour law contains no provisions for paternity leave. Employers can choose to provide leave at their discretion.
Parental leave in Egypt
Employers in Egypt with at least 50 employees must provide female workers with 24 months of unpaid leave for the purpose of taking care of a child. However, employees can only take this type of leave twice during their entire employment service. It is not available to male employees.
Adoption leave in Egypt
Egyptian labour law does not currently provide a statutory right to adoption leave. While female employees are entitled to maternity leave, there is no specific provision for adoption leave in the existing legislation.
Some employers, particularly multinational companies, may offer adoption leave as part of their internal policies. However, these benefits are not mandated by Egyptian labour law.
Other leave in Egypt
Employees in Egypt may also be entitled to other types of leave, depending on the collective bargaining agreements that apply and the specifics of their employment contract. Read on to learn about some of the most common types of leave you might come across as an employer or an employee in Egypt.
Casual leave in Egypt
Employees are entitled to at least six days of casual leave per year, which must be taken in blocks of one or two days. This is part of the overall annual leave entitlement. Employees don’t have to give a reason for taking casual leave.
Study leave in Egypt
Some collective bargaining agreements may grant employees who are students the right to study leave.
Military leave in Egypt
Employees in Egypt are entitled to unpaid leave from work while retaining their jobs if they are required to serve in the military. Once their service is over, the employee must be returned to work within 60 days of submitting a request to do so, as long as they make the request within 30 days of their release from military service.
Bereavement leave in Egypt
There are no specific provisions in Egyptian labour law for bereavement leave. However, employees may use their casual leave for this purpose.
Pilgrimage leave in Egypt
Employees who have worked for the same company for at least five years are entitled to 30 days of paid leave to complete a pilgrimage, which is a religious journey to a sacred place. Employees can only use this leave once in their entire service period.
Public holidays in Egypt
There are 13 public holidays per year in Egypt. Each year, the government decides whether to move any holidays that fall on a weekend to the next working day. They are a mixture of religious holidays and dates of national significance. Some public holidays in Egypt are on fixed dates each year, while others are moving holidays.
Are public holidays paid in Egypt?
Employees generally have the right to time off on at least some public holidays in Egypt. Any employees who do work on a public holiday should be paid a supplement of 100% of their normal wages for each hour worked.
Public holidays in Egypt in 2025
Here are the public holidays observed in Egypt in 2025:
7 January
Coptic Christmas Day
25 January
January 25th Revolution and National Police Day
30 March–1 April
Eid Al-Fitr
21 April
Sham El-Nessim
25 April
Sinai Liberation Day
1 May
Labour Day
5 June
Arafat’s Day
6 June
Eid Al-Adha
26 June
Islamic New Year
30 June
June 30 Revolution
23 July
23 July Revolution Day
4 September
Prophet Muhammad’s Birthday
6 October
Armed Forces Day
Protect your employees and your business
As an employer in Egypt, you need to understand your employees’ rights and entitlements. But keeping up with them can be a lot of work.
When you hire workers with CXC, we’ll ensure your engagements are in line with all local, national and international employment regulations. That way, your workers will get their benefits they’re entitled to, and your business will be protected from risk.
Compliantly hire employees anywhere with CXC
With our EoR solution, you can engage workers anywhere in the world, without putting your business at risk. No more worrying about local labour laws, tax legislation or payroll customs — we’ve got you covered.
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